I had my dog neutered when he was around 2 years old.
At first, his interactions with other dogs were normal.
But for the past 2 weeks, all the males have been trying to mount him. Even the ones he sees regularly.
At the dog park, he stays right by my feet because there are so many dogs following him, and you can really tell he's not happy about the situation. He tries to stand his ground but nothing seems to work.
Does anyone have any advice?
What should I do? It's all becoming a bit much.
Is it just a phase?
Thanks for your help
Translated from French
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Which actually reminds me of a scene at a dog park once.
Two entire Cane Corsos (Cani Corsi?) around 2 or 3 years old were vying for my big ginger lad’s curly little backside. They were circling him, acting all sweet and playing the part of big harmless goofs, wagging their little docked tails for all they were worth. There were no obvious mounting attempts (though the intention was crystal clear to anyone with half an eye for dog behaviour), as my red boy kept facing the two giants to protect his rear, offering play bows as a kind of diversion.
I tried explaining to the owners that it was about to kick off between their two dogs and that they were sizing each other up. Naturally, they didn't have a clue what was happening right under their noses: to them, they were "just playing", my dog was "initiating play", and the two Canes were wagging their tails like helicopter blades—basically, everything was fine. I started calmly heading for the exit of that dreaded dog park, but too late: it all went south.
Who do you think ended up injured, and who got away scot-free?
Of course, it was the two Canes who tore into each other, like two males fighting over a female. One ended up with a bloody ear, and the other was pinned to the ground by his owner, who was holding him by the throat and screaming just inches from his face, "I’M THE BOSS!" (True story—it was like a comedy sketch).
As you can imagine, my red lad and I just politely made our excuses and left.
Right. And if we can protect a neutered dog from other dogs, why not just do that with an intact dog?
Well, of course you can :)
Except you’ll be dealing with much more hostile, potentially more violent behaviour, because it's driven by rivalry. Your reaction time will have to be much tighter. The risk of a proper attack resulting in injuries—either for the dog being mounted, the one doing the mounting, or the owner trying to step in—is much higher.
Having experienced both (I actually had one of my dogs neutered specifically because aggressive behaviour from other males was becoming more frequent and violent), I much prefer helping my dog when he’s being followed by a 'lovestruck' male (who is usually not very aggressive, more like a happy-go-lucky idiot totally ruled by his hormones) than helping him against a male who's looking to pick a fight. He’s also much more relaxed now that he’s only very occasionally followed by 'lovestruck' males instead of being regularly charged at by rivals.
If you take even a basic interest in canine ethology, you quickly learn that mounting in dogs is... multifaceted :)
It can be linked to sexual arousal, an emotional release after a period of stress, play, or even agonistic behaviour (related to social conflict).
Any dog, regardless of their hormonal status (female, male, puppy or adult, neutered or not) is liable to be mounted for various reasons. Neutering actually tends to increase sexual mounting (neutered males are often seen as attractive and less threatening by other males). Conversely, staying "entire" tends to trigger more agonistic mounting... which isn’t much better, really.
An entire male soon learns how to stand his ground because he has no choice: the males that come to mount him usually do so out of rivalry, and therefore with a certain level of hostility. Usually, you don't even have time to see the full mounting because it stops at a paw or a head on the back before a proper "telling-off" occurs—or even a scrap if the mounter persists. This can lead people to think that this behaviour doesn't exist between entire males, when in fact it’s everywhere... it’s just cut short.
Generally, neutered males, who deal with mounting that is more sexual in nature, take longer to stand up for themselves because the dogs mounting them aren't doing it out of rivalry. On the contrary: I've seen entire males, known for being extremely aggressive with other intact males, literally "woo" my boys. Ultimately, it’s very similar to street harassment for women: it’s hard to be truly violent when rebuffing a man who follows you "only" to tell you you're pretty and that he'd like your number. Even if his behaviour is incredibly irritating, he isn't being aggressive, so you don't feel you have a reason to be aggressive back. And it’s exactly through that irritation, when it happens too often, that neutered males eventually react and learn to set boundaries.
The idea is simply to give them enough support so they learn to say "no" without resorting to excessive aggression. That way, they can maintain harmonious long-term relationships with their fellow dogs.
Actually, this issue is far from being unavoidable. Out of my three boys, one was a victim of this kind of bullying for the first year after he was neutered. It gradually settled down, I imagine both because he found his feet and became more assertive, and because his scent changed. He’s remained very social with other dogs. Every now and then a male will still bother him, and in those cases, he’ll spin around sharply to face them; if they persist, he gives them a proper telling off, and usually, the other dog gets the hint and moves on. Then the walk can just carry on as normal.
My second one is sometimes attractive to other males, but they rarely go as far as mounting him—I expect that’s because he’s bigger and more imposing. The entire males who take a liking to him usually just follow him around looking a bit gormless, while he just carries on his way like nothing is happening. With the third one, it never happens. He has a much more dominant way of communicating. Other dogs simply don’t dare.
In your dog's case, there’s a middle ground to be found between letting him communicate so he learns to say "no" effectively but fairly—as it’s his own behaviour that will eventually stop the other males from trying it—and stepping in to defend him if you see he’s struggling. Just keep in mind that you need to act well before you feel your dog has reached his limit, to stop him from going off other dogs or even becoming aggressive.
Why did you have him neutered? Was there an issue with how he got on with other dogs before he was done? Regardless, I’ll say it again: just standing around in a dog park isn’t a good idea. I’ve been frequenting these kinds of places for five years, so I’ve seen my fair share of scraps. Hanging about in one spot really encourages conflict between dogs. If your dog were entire, the risk would be him getting into a proper row with other entire males. Since he’s neutered, the risk is the harassment. It’s much better to organise walks with other owners where you keep moving. When you have no choice but to go to the park, avoid staying static (everyone sat on a bench chatting); keep the dogs moving, give them things to do, and manage their interactions.
👍
Actually, this issue is by no means a lost cause.
Out of my three boys, one was a target for this kind of pestering during the first year after he was neutered. It gradually settled down, I imagine, partly because he became more assertive and partly because his scent changed. He stayed very sociable with other dogs. Every now and then, another male still bothers him; when that happens, he whips around sharply to face them, and if they don’t take the hint, he gives them a proper telling off. Usually, the other dog gets the message and moves on, and we can carry on with our walk as normal.
My second one is sometimes attractive to other males, but they rarely go as far as mounting him—I expect because he’s bigger and more imposing. The entire (unneutered) males who take a fancy to him usually just follow him around looking gormless, while he just carries on as if nothing is happening.
With my third one, it never happens. He has a much more dominant way of communicating. Other dogs just don't dare.
In your dog’s case, you need to find a middle ground. You should let him communicate so he learns how to say "no" effectively but reasonably—as it’s his own behaviour that will ultimately discourage other males—but you must step in to defend him if you see he’s struggling. Just keep in mind that you need to react well before your dog reaches his breaking point, to ensure he doesn’t end up disliking the company of other dogs or even becoming aggressive.
Why did you have him neutered? Was there an issue with how he got on with other dogs before the procedure?
Anyway, I’ll say it again: just standing around in a dog park isn’t a good idea. I’ve been going to these places for five years, so I’ve seen my fair share of scuffles. Milling about in one spot really fuels conflict between dogs. If your dog were still entire, the risk would be him getting into a proper scrap with other unneutered males. Since he’s neutered, the risk is this constant pestering.
It’s much better to arrange walks with other dog owners where you keep moving. When you have no choice but to go to the park, avoid staying stationary (like everyone sitting on a bench chatting). Keep the dogs moving, give them things to do, and manage their interactions.
I agree, try to go for walks in quiet spots and, if possible, with other calm dogs who listen when they’re told to stop. That way, you can just step in verbally.
It’s definitely better to intervene so he doesn’t have to put up with too much of what he dislikes... Otherwise, over time, it could stress him out or make him frustrated with other dogs, which might complicate his future communication with them.
Usually, this mounting issue crops up shortly after the op and tends to sort itself out over time.
If it’s been several months or even years since he was done, it’s quite strange for it to start all of a sudden with dogs he’s been around for ages. Are you sure everything’s alright health-wise? I’m not necessarily thinking of anything serious, but perhaps a minor genital infection that might be changing his scent and making him more "appealing" to the others.
Are the males hassling him neutered or entire? How old are they?
If they’re young entire males (under 3 years old) who have suddenly started humping him when they didn’t before, it might actually be their hormones playing up rather than your dog’s.
Anyway, if you see that your dog can’t handle it while staying calm, it’s up to you to step in and shoo away the dogs that are pestering him. Have a word with the owners of the mounting dogs so they can manage their pets properly too.
Letting dogs "sort it out amongst themselves" is fine as a first port of call, but when it’s clearly not working and one dog is being bullied by the others, you have to intervene.
Also, keep in mind that dog parks are alright as a quick fix when you want to let your dog off the lead in the city and haven’t got time to go elsewhere, but it should only be a temporary solution. Nothing beats a proper off-lead walk in the countryside. Dogs get bored of those parks pretty quickly and end up pestering others just for something to do. Staying in a small, enclosed space really encourages that kind of bullying behaviour.
Try going for walks away from the dog park where he can’t get enough space from the other dogs; it’ll stop him from being bullied with no way to escape. :)
